Boots Ireland have announced a three-year sponsorship with the FAI as partner of the Republic of Ireland Women’s National Team.
Republic of Ireland Captain and Arsenal midfielder Katie McCabe was in Dublin to announce the sponsorship which aims to help boost confidence in girls and women.
The FAI said that new independent research from Boots Ireland has revealed that 71% believe that people should attend women’s sporting events to show their support and a further 76% of those surveyed believe female sports stars should be equally celebrated as their male counterparts. Interestingly only 7% of the population of Ireland have ever attended a live women’s sporting event.
The research also highlighted the positive impact sport has had on women in Ireland with over a third (35%) of women feeling good about themselves when playing sports. Furthermore, 31% of women who play sports feel happier and 45% feel healthier.
Speaking at the launch at Tallaght Stadium, McCabe said: “It was great to see the women’s game get the exposure it deserves during the Women’s World Cup, and campaigns like this between Boots Ireland and the FAI will only help to grow support of women’s football.”
Bernadette Lavery, Managing Director of Boots Ireland, said: “It’s wonderful to see such positive and growing support for women’s football in Ireland and we look forward to utilising our platforms, including our stores, our website boots.ie as well as our social media channels to raise the profile of the women’s team.”
FAI General Manager, Noel Mooney added; “Women’s football continues to grow in every area – participation, performance and commercially. The FAI are delighted to partner with Boots to grow Women’s football in Ireland and we believe the Women’s national team will go from strength-to-strength.”
